Madeleine Cookies Recipes

I lovemadeleine cookies. I love them so much, I probably make them at least once a month. They're a great snack and I always have someone in our home to enjoy, especially for guests that stop by for tea time. Believe me, ours never go to waste.

My friend Zareen recently opened her new restaurant, aptly named Zareen's, on 1477 Plymouth in Mountain View. She serves delicious Pakistani/Indian kebabs and various scrumptious goods. She asked me if I'd be interested to make desserts. I rolled up my sleeves and jumped into her kitchen. I wanted to impart an oriental flair to the sweets so I prepared masala chai madeleine cupcakes. If you live in the area, stop in and try Zareen's delicous menu and my sweets! And if you don't live near by, you can always try and replicate them by watching my new madeleine cooking tuorial! Please check out and subscribe to my YouTube channel (PhamFataleDotCom) and bon appétit!

Maybe it's just me but I love having guests over for tea. It's fun because you can serve an assortment of savory and sweet treats to go along with it. And, of course, I love trotting out my different tea sets!

My go-to, fool-proof tea cake recipe is a French classic: the madeleine. The authentic, buttery, plain version is divine, but today I felt like adding something exotic and flavored the batter with coconut. The coconut version doesn't puff up as much as traditional madeleines normally do, but they are a touch crispier and pair wonderfully with a hot cup of tea.

Whenever I have time, I prepare breakfast in bed for my husband. And since madeleine cookies are his favorite, I prepared the batter the day before and stored it in the refrigerator to surprise him today. It took me less than 15 minutes to bake them the next morning and I was able to serve hot, straight from the oven vanilla-flavored madeleines to Lulu. If you're planning to serve breakfast, keep these French cookies in mind; they're absolutely delicious and not that difficult to make. Just read my secret to the characteristic bump for an authentic version of madeleine cookies and these cookies are guaranteed to turn out well.

Vanilla is a great flavoring in general, and I think it adds another dimension to madeleines. I can't imagine a home baker's pantry not having a bottle of vanilla extract around the holidays. I used Nielsen Massey vanilla extract in this recipe. In case you’re not familiar, Nielsen Massey vanillas are full flavored and there are distinct differences between the varieties. It may be vanilla, but it's definitely not plain! The folks at Nielsen Massey were kind enough to provide one (two-ounce) bottle of each Tahitian, Mexican & Madagascar vanilla extract and "A Century of Flavor" cookbook as today’s giveaway. Be sure to enter for a chance to win (click on the link).

My husband Lulu loves madeleines. It always reminds him of our trips to Paris. I haven't made any in so long, I thought it was time to surprise him with a fresh batch. I made the madeleines Halloween-friendly by giving them a green color and decorating them with Halloween-themed designs. Pandan is my green food color of choice, and I've flavored and colored a lot of French desserts with it in the past.

Most of the madeleines I've had in America are flat, dry and not very tasty, so I wouldn't be surprised if you're not a fan. The authentic French version must have "the bump" (follow the recipe and you'll find out the secret for fool-proof madeleines) to be truly fluffy and tasty. It creates a light and delicate gourmet cookie that is so pleasant with a hot cup of tea. Not to forget the kid-friendly part, I decorated the madeleines with sprinkles and chocolate chips and wrote spooky messages that for sure will satisfy both big and little kids! And Lulu is most definitely a big kid. He still loves taking his kid sisters trick-or-treating so that he can raid their bags of candy later on. Maybe with these madeleines in the house, he'll stop stealing their sweet treats!